Kelvin Carpenter
Kelvin Carpenter was the intelligent teenager of local builder Tony Carpenter and his wife, Hannah. He moved to Albert Square in March 1985 following the separation of his parents and soon attracted the attention of teenagers Michelle Fowler and Sharon Watts, who both fought over him but lost due to his jilting. As well as being a heartbreaker, Kelvin was entrepreneurial and attempted to set up a business on the Square, although it was unsuccessful. He then joined a music band with his fellow teenager friends, but the band was also unsuccessful and quickly broke down. By 1987, Kelvin was taking his A-level exams in the hopes he would be able to attend East Anglia university to study computer science. His revision paid off and in the September of that year, he moved away from the Square. In 2010, Ian Beale found Kelvin on a social networking site and learnt from him that he was a songwriter with a model girlfriend. Ian planned to meet up with Kelvin but he never showed up. Kelvin later admitted that he lied to Ian. Then in 2017, Martin Fowler contacted Kelvin for a reunion. However, Kelvin failed to show up once again. Biography 1985-1986: A student, entrepreneur, singer and heartbreaker Kelvin first moved into Albert Square with his father, Tony Carpenter, in March 1985 following the separation of his parents. He chose to live with his father whilst his younger sister, Cassie, lived with their mother, Hannah Carpenter. Kelvin quickly befriended the other teenagers living on the Square: Ian Beale, Michelle Fowler and Sharon Watts, and soon found himself in a love triangle, with both Michelle and Sharon fancying him. While Kelvin was flattered by Michelle and Sharon's infatuation towards him, things got bitter between the girls and they ended up fighting for him. Sharon even suggested going on the contraceptive pill so she and Kelvin could have sex. Kelvin soon realised that a relationship would cause him to lose focus of his education and as a result, he jilted both of them. In July 1985, Kelvin decided to set-up a business with Ian. Lofty Holloway then joined that business and the trio named themselves "Loftelian Enterprises". The business was set to sell knitted jumpers on the market but despite all three of the owners putting all their efforts into the business, it did not last long. Following the business's break down, Kelvin bagged himself a job at the Foodstore, although he did not stay in the job for long, as by January 1986 Tony decided he was no longer to work there following a racist attack on the foreign local businesses. Kelvin's relationship with his younger sister was strong, and in early 1986, when Cassie claimed she was being abused by Hannah's then-boyfriend, Neville Agard, Kelvin was the only one who believed her. He tried many times to help his father realise that Cassie was being honest, but it was only when Hannah caught Neville trying to hit Cassie with a riding crop that Tony realised what had been going on, and he apologised to Kelvin for doubting his judgement. Kelvin started attending college in 1986 following successful exam results and quickly befriended Harry Reynolds and Tessa Parker - the latter of which he had a brief relationship with. Kelvin's friendship with Harry and Tessa was unhealthy, as the pair would often force their radical political beliefs on him to alter how he viewed life. Kelvin began sidelining Ian, Michelle and Sharon in order to spend more time with Harry and Tessa, and was soon confronted by Michelle, who helped him realise what he was doing. Later in the year, Kelvin, along with Harry, Ian, Michelle, Sharon and Simon Wicks became part of a music band which they called "The Banned". Kelvin was an instrumentalist and singer within the group, although the band was unsuccessful and soon split up thanks to Harry's tampering at their first gig. 1986-1987: Growing Up and Moving On In late 1986, Kelvin began dating Carmel Roberts, the Square's local health visitor. Hannah and Tony were unimpressed by their son's relationship with Carmel, given she was a significant number of years older than him. Kelvin rebelled against his parents wishes for him to break up with Carmel and he ended up moving out of the family flat and into his own flat next door. Carmel then moved in with him, but the pair only enjoyed a short-lived relationship, as Carmel ended everything when the age difference began taking its toll. Kelvin then befriended Ian's girlfriend, Tina Hopkins, and later tried flirting with her, only to be shunned by her. After Tony left Walford for Trinidad in May 1987, Kelvin was left to fend for himself. He returned his focus to education and revised hard for his A-level exams, hoping to study computer science at East Anglia University. By August, Kelvin received his results and had succeeded in his exams, enabling him to leave for university the following month. Carmel asked Kelvin out for a meal, for old times sake, while Sharon decided to host a surprise leaving party for Kelvin and get a number of his friends involved. However, as Sharon and his friends all waited in anticipation for his arrival, Carmel walked through the door with a note from him, telling her he could not face saying goodbye. Kelvin left Walford without saying goodbye to anyone. Other information * Kelvin attended East Anglia University and studied computer science. * In 2010, Ian Beale found Kelvin on a social media network and messaged him. Kelvin told Ian that he was a songwriter and had a model girlfriend. Ian planned to meet up with Kelvin but he never turned up. Kelvin later admitted to Ian that he lied. * In 2017, Martin Fowler contacted Kelvin to arrange a reunion between him and Michelle Fowler. However, Kelvin failed to show once again. Background information * Kelvin was one of the original set of twenty-three characters in EastEnders. * Kelvin was originally meant to be called Kevin. * Kelvin was written out of the show when Paul J. Medford decided to quit the show to follow his ambition of becoming a singer/dancer in 1987. * The true reason behind Kelvin departing without saying goodbye to anyone was because the lot recordings for each week's episodes occurred two weeks before studio recordings for the same episode. As a result, by the time the leaving party was recorded in the studio, Paul J. Medford was already out of contract and had left the show. First and last lines "Hmm, nice yourself." (First line to his father, commenting on his suit) --- "Yeah." (Final line, to Carmel Roberts) See also *Full list of appearances Category:EastEnders characters Category:Original characters Category:Carpenter family Category:1985 debuts Category:1987 departures Category:Residents of 3A Albert Square Category:Residents of 3B Albert Square Category:Foodstore staff